Improved connection for barrel-rafts



UNITED ASTATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT W. PARK, OF ALLEGHENY CITY, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVED CONNECTION FOR. BARREL-RAFTS.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 4h71?, dated February 23,1864.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT W. PARK, of the city and county of Alleghenyand State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement inConnections for Floating Barrels; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, which form part of thisspecification, and to the letters ot reference marked thereon.

The object of my invention is to unite barrels securely together bymeans of clamps, so as to form them into rafts for the purpose offloating a number of them laden with oil or other light substancessafely down creeks and rivers to their place of destination.

rIhe nature of my invention consists in providing each barrel with anadjustable clamp, so constructed as to t different sizes and support aneye or ring over the chine of each barrel large enough to admit of arope being passed through for holding them together side by side, and inaddition thereto an adjustable crab,7 iittin g against the head of eachbarrel for holding them together endwise.

To enable others to make and use my invention, I will proceed todescribe its con# struction and operation by reference to theaccompanying drawings', in which- Figure l represents a longitudinalvertical section of my improved clamp. Fig. 2 shows atop view of thesame. Fig. 3 represents a front view of the crab. l ig. 4 is an edgeview of two crabs joined together by a swivel-bolt. Fig. 5 represents avertical section of the crabs attached to the heads of two barrels. Fig.6 is a cross-section of a crab near its center.

All the drawings are lettered, and similar letters indicate like partson all the gures.

I construct my improved clamp, as represented by Figs. 1 and 2, of twowrought-iron bars, one-fourth of an inch thick and oneinch broad. One ofthese bars is cutthe length of the barrel, the other only half as long.On one end of these bars is turned a hook, R, of suflicient depth tocatch over the chine, when through the bars so cut and turned is rivetedan eye or ring, H, directly over the point of the hook, for purposeshereinafter to be stated. Through the short bar L is punched a couple ofslots, M. M, and in the long bar S, so as to come directly opposite theslots in the short bar, are screw-holes. Thel bars are now slightly bentor curved, to suit the bilge of the barrel, when the thumb-screws P Pare passed through the slots in the short bar and screwed into the longone, the slots being of sufficient length to admit of the clamp beinglengthened or shortened to suit different-sized barrels, and also tofacilitate adjusting them when in place.

The crab, Fig. 3, I intend to make of wrought or malleable cast-iron,and is formed of two bars, D and X, one of which slides in a groove orchannel, o, cut in the other. The outer ends of these bars are forked,so as to give several bearin gs against the chine of the barrel, and arefurnished with teeth N N, to catch in the wood to prevent slippage andto hold the crab secure. They are also provided with set-screws p p,which enables the crab to be contracted or expanded, as the case mayrequlre.

The operation of my clamps and crabs is as follows: The bars of the crabare'contracted by loosening the pinch-screws p p, (as more particularlyillustrated 4in Fig. 6,) when the parts can be shoved together. They arethen placed against the head of the barrel, G, Fig. 5, rst puttingthrougha hole in the center of the crab, made for that purpose, theswivelbo1t W, with the head next that of the barrel. The crab is thenextended until the teeth N N lit tightly under the chine or overhang ofthe staves T T, when the pinch-screws p p are tightened down, whichholds the crab rmly in place. To fasten two barrels together endwise thebolt in one of the crabs is made hollow at its end', so as to allow theopposite bolt to pass into it, as shown at Fig. 5. A small key, K, isnow to be placed through both bolts, ahole having been made for thatpurpose. A-series of barrels having been fastened together by the crabs,end to end, a clamp, Fig. 1, is placed on each barrel by loosening orunscrewing the thumb-screws P P and expanding the clamp sufficiently toadmit of the hooks R R being passed over the chine. The bars L and S arenow to be contracted or slid together, s'o as to keep the hooks inplace, when, by means of the thumb-screws, the clamp is kept to thebarrel.

To form a raft, the barrels, being secured end to end by means of thecrabs, are rolled together side by side and a rope passed through theeyes or rings on the ends of the clamps, keeping the barrels together ina strong, substantial manner, the bolts between the crabs holding thunat the proper distance to prevent chawing.77

` Having thus described my invention,I will state that I am aware thatfloating barrels have been held together by means of clamps having hooksto catch over the chines and adjustable by means of a screw and nut. Iam also aware that barrels have been held together by swivels attachedto their heads.

Therefore I do not claim either of these plans; but

What I do claim is- R. W. PARK.

Witnesses J. W. ELLs, l BENJ. F. BLooD.

